the devil’s karaoke*

the song of the devil screams and echoes all through the country and zombies in masks of newborn babies dance and party under a moon the colour of fire. the smell of burning fresh human flesh rotten gas blood and tears like a shroud of thick poisonous clouds hot air burning your lungs and trees die and birds die and all different colours of insects die and earthworms die. the song of the devil screams and echoes all through the country, the country cursed for seven generations by mpu gandring, the country of baratayudha where brothers massacre brothers, a country full of wounds of blood of pus blighted by a plague from the gods, the gods of adam the gods of abraham the gods of moses the gods of ishmael and isaac. the song of the devil screams and screams and echoes and echoes never stopping and zombies of the gods dance and dance and party and party drunk on blood drunk on tears drunk on the sound of drums the sound of burning buildings the sound of broken bones the terrified screams of children who have lost their mothers. waves of hate and anger obliterate cities of salted fish and shrimp paste chilies, drowning and pummeling memories of childhood, neighbours and friends who have turned enemies, degenerates!, nameless enemies and intruders who have disturbed the peace of last night’s dreams. the song of the devil bounces into the air, straight through your eardrums, ripping the cloudless godless unforgiving tropical skies. sharpened machetes, spears and sickles tremble in wait to slash open skin and flesh and muscles of brown and yellow as newly freed ingrate slaves scream “reformasi” without knowing what it means and flatulent cowards and parasites lick the greasy balls of yesterday’s dictator. the song of the devil a karaoke of possessed zombies screams and screams and echoes and echoes never stopping leaving bottles empty of tears tables empty of tears chairs empty of tears stages empty of tears buildings empty of tears and a country empty of tears on a map empty of tears burnt to the ground burnt to the ground burnt to the ground…